Cheers Jonny, and no rush - I'm watching the miniseries now on Youtube and I'm curious to see how it compares. I'm enjoying it so far (I'm up to ep3) Was surprised to see Mr. Holmes himself Jeremy Brett in quite a major role.

Does anyone know if there's an English language copy of the miniseries anywhere? From what I can figure out it played once on UK TV some time in 1981 or 1982 and never again... The chances of finding a recording are slim to none, I'm guessing.

I'll send you a message later next week, and thanks again

If anyone wants to check it out, here's a link to a decent quality copy of the Italian language version which was recently uploaded. (all the previous copies that had surfaced weren't in very good shape - this one's okay)

Thanks Quidtum, it looks good - but it's obviously hard to tell from screenshots. How certain are you it's not from an original VHS tape? It looks like it could be to me.

If Jonny has the Precision tape, I'd prefer a copy from that. I'm just thinking about conservation here more than anything - it's better to get the best version available. (Please note, this is just for personal use...)

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"88Films tend to do what psychotics do,they confuse reality with illusion" David Cronenberg

The quality of the episodes on YouTube are not bad (certainly better than the old version that circulated on emule) but they are clearly in the wrong format (they should be fullscreen) and the guy who uploaded them has added an annoying watermark. Fortunately, the series is set to be aired on the Italian TV channel Rai Premium this fall, so hopefully someone will make a rip. It should make for a much more ideal version. Too bad it's in Italian only as this was clearly shot in English and I think most of the actors retain their own voices (Sherry Buchanan is one of the few who sounds noticeably dubbed).

I quite like the edited down feature length version. I find it very enjoyable and briskly paced but due to so much material being left out, some passages feel abrupt or confusing. The full mini series version plays more coherently and it's great to see all the "new" scenes. I especially loved all the extra stuff in the first episode, such as a better introduction of the blind sister, the murder of the sister's boyfriend (a character who was axed completely for the feature length version), the mysterious painter played by Patrizia Webley of PLAY MOTEL and MALABIMBA (another character who doesn't appear at all in edited down version) etc. But like most old TV mini series that were designed to be watched with one week between episodes, this contains the kind of exposition or padding which might not have been too noticeable at the time but which is very apparent when you're binge-watching. So I'd say the 90 minute version and the full mini-series both have their pros and cons. Still very much worth seeing. I for one like this one a lot. Great cast, some good suspense and atmospheric scuba scenes.

Actually, I'm quite surprised at how briskly it moves along compared to the other RAI miniseries I've seen... Yes, it does have long protracted dialogue scenes - but there's also a heck of a lot of action for a miniseries.

I'm just now learning about the 'secret' of Seagull Island... I'm thoroughly enjoying this, much more than I thought I would to be honest.

I agree, I'd love to see the English dub as well, Jeremy Brett had quite a distinct voice and it's a shame I'm not hearing it.

Often they'd have the rights to broadcast that one time only - and not beyond. Seems RAI has a stronger grip because it has at least played a few times over the years. That one and only UK broadcast in 1981 or 82' is the only trace I can find of this miniseries actually in English. But who knows? Maybe it will get a release some time down the line.

I'll have to ask a friend about this new broadcast - the Youtube copy is good, but it would be nice to have a higher res copy, definitely.

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"88Films tend to do what psychotics do,they confuse reality with illusion" David Cronenberg

Just reading this morning that there's a 5 minute chunk missing from the first epidode in the recent (better quality) upload. It occurs just after the discovery of the body on the beach - about 15 minutes into the episode.